What does El Shadai represent in Masonic teachings?

El Shaddai is recognized as one of the Hebrew names of God, rendered in biblical translation as God Almighty or God Omnipotent 1. It designates the name by which God was known to the Israelites before the communication of the Tetragrammaton to Moses 1. Derived from a root signifying all-powerful strength or the power to overthrow, the prefix El denotes the Ruler or Mighty One 1.

In the historical Masonic Constitutions, as recorded in a paper read before Quatuor Coronati Lodge, El Shaddai represents the Divine God whose special intervention aided Joshua and the Israelites in conquering fortified cities. Research presented before Quatuor Coronati Lodge also notes the term within Old Testament context discussed in Royal Arch studies, where it represents the divine name revealed to Abraham.